STRATEGIC
Research type
Research Study
Full title
White matter connections and memory: the STRATEGIC study
IRAS ID
129834
Contact name
Michael J O'Sullivan
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
King's College London
Research summary
Memory breakdown in older age is a major challenge for medical research, with an increasing burden in personal, societal and fiscal terms. Stroke is an important cause. Memory depends on widespread networks in the brain which are bound together by white matter connections, which essentially act as the wiring of brain networks. This project will use a technique called diffusion tensor MRI to investigate these connections and their relationship to brain function and patterns of memory impairment after stroke.
In a previous project we found that a tract called the fornix was most important in the healthy brain and in ageing. However, in individuals at an early stage of memory decline alternative pathways became disproportionately more important. This led to the idea that individuals with early memory decline might be especially vulnerable to injury to these alternative tracts from stroke. The purpose of this project will be to test this idea.
The project will focus on patients with recent stroke. MRI, including diffusion tensor MRI, and in-depth testing of memory and other cognitive functions will be performed. The pattern of damage to temporal lobe connections in the brain will be assessed and related to the impact of brain infarction on memory. We will determine how undamaged tracts contribute to recovery over one year. Finally, cutting-edge computational image analysis techniques will be applied to try and predict memory profile in more detail and extract maximum information about prognosis from brain images.
REC name
London - Bromley Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
13/LO/1745
Date of REC Opinion
9 Jan 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion